FRESH CONCRETE

The strength of
concrete is affected
by the degree of its
compaction, it is vital,
therefore, that the
consistency(ability to
flow) of the mix be
such that, the
concrete can be
transported, placed
and finished
sufficiently easily and
without segregation
WORKABILITY
Used to describe
the ease with which
concrete mixes can
be compacted
(completely
compacted using
the lowest possible
w/c)
Factors of Workability

1. Water Content: adding

water
↑ workability ↓STRENGTH
2. Maximum size of
aggregate: ↓ surface
area to be wetted
↑ water in medium
3. Grading of aggregates:
poor grading reduces
consistency
4. Shape and Texture of
aggregates: smooth
surface gives better
workability
Measurements of
Workability
(Indirect)

1. Slump Test
2. Compacting
Factor Test
3. Flow Table Test
4. VeBe Test
5. Kelly Ball Test
SLUMP TEST
Used in detecting
variations in the
uniformity of a mix of
given nominal
proportions
Stiff Mix = zero slump
Rich Mix = slump
varies but satisfactory
Lean Mix = shear or
collapse slump
COMPACTING
FACTOR TEST
Measurement of the
density ratio(actual
recorded density to
the density of the
same concrete that
is fully compacted)
FLOW TABLE TEST
Measures the
diameter of the
spread after
vibration
(Self Consolidation
Concrete/Self
Compacting
Concrete)
KELLY BALL TEST
Measures the depth
of penetration
SEGREGATION
Separation of the constituents of a
heterogeneous mixture so that the
distribution is no longer uniform.
TWO FORMS OF
CONCRETE SEGREGATION
1. Coarse particles tend
to separate out since
they settle more than
the fine particles

2. Segregation on wet
mixes (separation of
water + cement) from
the mix
BLEEDING (Water Gain)
Water from the mix
tends to rise to the
surface of freshly
placed concrete.
Bleeding can be
expressed as the total
settlement per unit
height of concrete.
Laitance- a weak,
friable layer on the
surface of concrete
and sand cement
screeds which appears
after curing.
COMPACTION OF CONCRETE
Consists essentially of the elimination of
entrapped air in concrete
(ramming/vibration)

Types of Vibration
1. Internal Vibration
2. External Vibration
3. Vibrating Tables
CURING OF CONCRETE (SAMPLE AND
ON-SITE)
The creation of an environment for a
period of time (suitable temperature,
prevention of loss of moisture or
providing moisture)
QUALITY OF MIXING
WATER
Suitability of water for
mixing and curing
processes should be
considered, quality of
water is covered by
saying water must be fit
for drinking.
PUMPED CONCRETE
A type of concrete which
is designed to be pump
able with relatively high
slump (6-8”)
UNDERWATER
CONCRETING
A special technique
used to make
concreting in water
(Tremie-Method)
HARDENED CONCRETE
Hardened concrete is a
product of binding and
hardening of the
concrete mixture which
contains ingredients
quantified in the
appropriate proportions:
binder (cement), coarse
aggregate (gravel), fine
aggregate (sand,
fraction <2mm), water
and optional additives (>
5% by weight of binder)
and admixtures (<5% by
weight of the binder).
COMPRESSIVE STRENGTH
Compressive strength of
concrete is the Strength
of hardened concrete
measured by the
compression test. The
compression strength of
concrete is a measure of
the concrete's ability to
resist loads which tend to
compress it. It is
measured by crushing
cylindrical concrete
specimens in
compression testing
machine.
FLEXURAL STRENGTH
Flexural strength
is one measure of
the tensile
strength of
concrete. It is a
measure of an
unreinforced
concrete beam Pavements, slabs and beams are
examples of elements that are loaded
or slab to resist in flexure.
failure in bending
TENSILE STRENGTH
There is no field test
for direct
determination of
tension under axial
loading. An indirect
method called the
splitting tensile test,
in which a standard
The splitting tensile test gives a good
test cylinder is indication of the tensile strength of the
loaded in concrete.
compression on its
side.
SHEAR, TORSION and
COMBINED STRESSES
Shear is a loading in
which a part of a
member attempts to
slide or shear along
another part.
Torsion, which is a
twisting, is also
complex and
difficult to evaluate.
When concrete fails,
a combination of
stresses causes the
failure.
DURABILITY
Besides its ability to sustain loads,
concrete is also required to be
durable. The durability of
concrete can be defined as its
resistance to deterioration resulting
from
external and internal causes. The
external causes include the effects
of environmental and service
conditions to which concrete is
subjected such as weathering,
chemical actions and wear. The
internal causes are the effects of
interaction between the constituent
material such as alkali-aggregate
reaction, volume changes,
absorption and permeability.
EXTERNAL CAUSES
1. Leaching out of Cement
2. Actions of sulphates, seawater
and natural slightly acidic
water.
3. Occurrence of extreme
temperatures, abrasion and
electrostatic action. Leaching out of Cement

Weathering water marks on concrete

Sulphate attack on concrete
INTERNAL CAUSES
1. Alkali-aggregate reactions
2. Volume change due to
difference in thermal properties
of the aggregate and cement
paste.
3. Permeability of concrete.
Alkali-aggregate reaction

Volume change in concrete Permeability of concrete

SHRINKAGE
Shrinkage of concrete is caused
by the setting of solids and the
loss of free water from the plastic
concrete (plastic shrinkage), by
the chemical combination of
cement with water (autogenous
Autogenous shrinkage of high performance
shrinkage) and by the drying concrete
concrete (drying shrinkage).

Typical plastic shrinkage in concrete Dryiing shrinkage in concrete

Types of Concrete Defects

1. CRACKS
Cracks are formed in
concrete due to many
reasons but when these
cracks are very deep, it is
unsafe to use that concrete
structure. Various reasons for
cracking are improper mix
design, insufficient curing,
omission of expansion and Concrete Cracks

contraction joints, use of high

slump concrete mix,
unsuitable sub-grade etc.
2. CRAZING
Crazing also called as pattern
cracking or map cracking, is
the formation of closely
spaced shallow cracks in an
uneven manner. Crazing
occurs due to rapid
hardening of top surface of
concrete due to high Pattern Cracks
temperatures or if the mix
contains excess water
content or due to insufficient
curing.
3. BLISTERING
Blistering is the formation of
hollow bumps of different
sizes on concrete surface
due to entrapped air under
the finished concrete
surface. It may cause due to
excessive vibration of
concrete mix or presence of Concrete Blisters
excess entrapped air in mix
or due to improper finishing.
4. DELAMINATION
Delamination is also similar to
blistering. In this case also,
top surface of concrete gets
separated from underlying
concrete. Hardening of top
layer of concrete before the
hardening of underlying
concrete will lead to
delamination. It is because
Delamination
the water and air bleeding
from underlying concrete are
struck between these two
surfaces, hence space will be
formed.
5. DUSTING
Dusting, also called as
chalking is the formation of
fine and loose powdered
concrete on the hardened
concrete by disintegration.
This happens due to the
presence of excess amount
of water in concrete. It
causes bleeding of water
from concrete, with this fine Dusting in Concrete
particles like cement or sand
will rise to the top and
consequent wear causes
dust at the top surface.
6. CURLING
When a concrete slab is
distorted into curved shape
by upward or downward
movement of edges or
corners, it is called curling. It
occurs mainly due to the
differences in moisture
content or temperature
between slab surface (top)
and slab base (bottom).
7. EFFLORESCENCE
Efflorescence is the formation
of deposits of salts on the
concrete surface. Formed
salts generally white in color.
It is due to the presence of
soluble salts in the water
which is used in making
Efflorescence
concrete mix.
8. SCALING and SPALLING
Scaling and spalling, in both
the cases concrete surface
gets deteriorated and flaking
of concrete occurs. The main
cause for this type of cases is
penetration of water through
concrete surface. This makes Scaling
steel gets corroded and
spalling or scaling may
occurs.

Spalling
ACI METHOD OF
PROPORTIONING CONCRETE
MIXES
ACI METHOD OF PROPORTIONING CONCRETE MIXES
The ACI Standard 211.1 is a “Recommended Practice for Selecting
Proportions for Concrete”

Step 1. Choice of slump. If slump is not specified, a value appropriate for

the work can be selected from
Table A1.6.3.1 Recommended Slumps for Various Types of Construction.
Step 2. Choice of maximum size of aggregate.
Large maximum sizes of aggregates produce less voids than smaller sizes.
Hence, concretes with the larger-sized aggregates require less mortar per
unit volume of concrete, and of coarse it is the mortar which contains the
most expensive ingredient, cement.
Thus the ACI method is based on the principle that the MAXIMUM SIZE OF
AGGREGATE SHOULD BE THE LARGEST AVAILABLE SO LONG IT IS
CONSISTENT WITH THE DIMENSIONS OF THE STRUCTURE.
In practice the dimensions of the forms or the spacing of the rebars
controls the maximum CA size.

• ACI 211.1 states that the maximum CA size should not exceed:
1) one-fifth of the narrowest dimension between sides of forms,
2) one-third the depth of slabs,
3) 3/4-ths of the minimum clear spacing between individual reinforcing
bars, bundles of bars, or pre-tensioning strands.

• Special Note: When high strength concrete is desired, best results may be obtained with
reduced maximum sizes of aggregate since these produce higher strengths at a given w/c
ratio.
Step 3. Estimation of mixing water and air content. The ACI Method uses
past experience to give a first estimate for the quantity of water per unit
volume of concrete required to produce a given slump.

• In general the quantity of water per unit volume of concrete required

to produce a given slump is dependent on the maximum CA size,
the shape and grading of both CA and FA, as well as the amount of
entrained air.

• It is interesting to note that the water content is not greatly affected

by the amount of cement in the concrete mix proportions. The
approximate amount of water required for average aggregates is
given in Table 9-2.
TABLE A1.6.3.3 - APPROXIMATE MIXING WATER AND AIR CONTENT
REQUIREMENTS FOR DIFFERENT SLUMPS AND MAXIMUM SIZES OF
AGGREGATES FOR NON-AIR ENTRAINED CONCRETE
Step 4. Selection of water/cement ratio.
• The required water/cement ratio is determined by strength, durability
and finishability. The appropriate value is chosen from prior testing of a
given system of cement and aggregate or a value is chosen from Table
A1.6.3.4(a) and/or A1.6.3.4(b).
Step 5. Calculation of cement content.
• The amount of cement is fixed by the determinations made in Steps 3 and
4 above.

Step 6. Estimation of coarse aggregate content.

• The ACI Method uses the principle that “The same maximum size and
grading will produce concrete of satisfactory workability when a given
volume of coarse aggregate, on a dry-rodded basis, is used per unit
volume of concrete.”
• This has been incorporated in the ACI standard in Table 9-5.
• The most economical concrete will have as much as possible space
occupied by CA since it will require no cement in the space filled by CA.
TABLE A1.6.3.6 - VOLUME OF COARSE AGGREGATE PER UNIT OF VOLUME
OF CONCRETE

* Volumes are based on aggregates in dry-rodded condition as described in ASTM C29 Unit
Weight of Aggregate. These volumes are selected from empirical relationships to produce
concrete with a degree of workability suitable for usual reinforced construction. For less
workable concrete such as required for concrete pavement construction they may be
increased about 10 percent. For more workable concrete, such as may sometimes be
required when placement is to be by pumping, they may be reduced up to 10 percent.
• The ACI method is based on large numbers of experiments which have
shown that for properly graded materials, the finer the sand and the
larger the size of the particles in the CA, the more volume of CA can be
used to produce a concrete of satisfactory workability

• In practice Table 9-5 can be used to estimate the volume of CA, on a

“dryrodded” unit volume basis, which can be used in a mix. Thus for a
one cubic yard mix one multiplies the number in Table 9-5 by 27 to obtain
the volume fraction, on a dry-rodded unit weight basis, in the mix.

• This volume must then be converted into a weight fraction by using

the dry-rodded unit weight of the CA being used in the design. DO
NOT USE THE REGULAR BULK SPECIFIC GRAVITY.
• This dry weight is then used in the next step.
Step 7. Estimation of Fine Aggregate Content.
• At the completion of Step 6, all ingredients of the concrete have been
estimated except the fine aggregate. Its quantity can be determined
by difference if the “absolute volume” displaced by the known
ingredients-, (i.e., water, air, cement, and coarse aggregate), is
subtracted from the unit volume of concrete to obtain the required
volume of fine aggregate.
• Then once the volumes are know the weights of each ingredient can
be calculated from the specific gravities.
• A second, less exact method of estimating the fine aggregate
content is discussed in the text book under the “weight” method.
• In this course we will only use the more exact “absolute volume”
method.
• At this stage of the process there is a complete description of the mix
proportions, but the moisture content is assumed to be SSD (saturated
surface dry) for the FA and “air-dry” for the CA.
Step 8. Adjustments for Aggregate Moisture.
• Aggregate quantities actually to be weighed out for the concrete
must allow for moisture in the aggregates. Usually the air-dry condition
for the CA is close enough for use in laboratory, but the FA is often 2%
or 3% above or below SSD.
• This means that a correction must be made before a laboratory
batch of concrete is made.

Step 9. Trial Batch Adjustments.

• The ACI method is written on the basis that a trial batch of concrete
will be prepared in the laboratory, and adjusted to give the desired
slump, freedom from segregation, finishability, unit weight, air content
and strength.